Gordon-Conwell Professor Injured, Alum Killed in S. Korea Bus Crash

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A professor who teaches at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is still in critical condition after the bus he was riding in fell off an elevated road in South Korea on route to the country's international airport in Incheon.

Dr. Gary Parrett, professor of Educational Ministries and Worship at Gordon-Conwell, has been unconscious since Saturday and receiving treatment at a hospital in Seoul for the injuries he sustained after the bus carrying him and 23 others attempted to avoid a broken down car, hit a guardrail and plunged from the elevated road to the ground 30 feet below.

The accident left twelve dead, including Gordon-Conwell alum Kyu Bum "Kenny" Ye, who had just recently been installed as associate pastor at High Covenent Church in Arlington, Mass. Ye, a friend of the Parrett family, was planning to get his pastoral credentials through the Evangelical Covenant Church.

"Please … continue to pray for the family and friends of Kenny Ye, a dear friend of our family [and GCTS alum] who was travelling (sic) with my father and passed away in the accident," reported Parrett's daughter, Alisa, a day after the accident.

As for her father, Alisa said there haven't really been any major developments in his condition, though "he is progressing slowly."

"Much of the blood ... from the lungs seems to be drained, but his lungs must continue to recover for a while yet," she reported Thursday in a website set up to update loved ones on her father's condition.

According to Alisa, Parrett's lungs were seriously damaged after a broken rib partially punctured them following the crash. Parrett also suffered some brain damage.

On Thursday, Alisa said doctors were reducing the amount of sedatives they were giving to Parrett in hopes that he will be able to start breathing more comfortably without the aid of a machine in the near future. The doctors also attached a feeding tube to him that day and started giving him food for the first time, Alisa reported.

"Please continue to keep him in your prayers," she concluded. "Thank you all for your support and love."

Prayers for Ye's family and Highrock Church have also been urged by Gordon-Conwell.